Consumers report engine run-on

Annastashya Emmanuelle, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Over three months after unleaded gasoline entered the market here, some consumers are complaining of experiencing a minor engine tick, the Joint Committee For Leaded Gasoline Phase Out (KPBB) said.

Chief of the committee Ahmad Safrudin said that the gasoline, distributed by state oil and gas company Pertamina, should not affect engine performance as long as it had the standard octane level of 88.

"We ask Pertamina to closely watch the quality of the gasoline and make sure the unleaded gasoline is not mixed with any other substance," he told The Jakarta Post last weekend during a campaign to promote unleaded gasoline.

According to Pertamina, the unleaded gasoline it distributes has a standard octane level of 88 and 94 for the Super TT.

"There's nothing wrong with the gasoline. If some consumers are experiencing an engine tick, it must be caused by poor vehicle maintenance," said Widiarto, Pertamina's business development director.

Pertamina, however, admits that they are facing difficulties in importing the High Octane Mogas Component (HOMC) which is injected into the gasoline to replace lead, due to the fluctuation of the rupiah against the U.S. dollar.

The company has been distributing unleaded gasoline since July, mainly in Greater Jakarta and has set a target for the gasoline be used nationwide by 2003.

Aside from the benefits of the cleaner unleaded gasoline, a vehicle will cause less pollution when the engine is well maintained by keeping the carburetor, fuel injector, intake valve and combustion chamber clean, according to the Indonesian Association of Automotive Industries.

They too acknowledged that vehicles manufactured before 1985 may be affected by valve corrosion using unleaded gasoline. If the car is properly maintained, however, the problem might not arise. Ideally, though, a catalytic converter should be installed to adjust to the unleaded gasoline.

The Environmental Impact Management Agency stressed the importance of phasing out the use of leaded gasoline as the lead in the city's air has already reached an alarming level and could cause health problems.

"The immediate effect (of the high level of lead in the air) is a decline in lung function, an increase in respiratory difficulties, eye irritation and other complaints," the agency said in their statement.